Thursday, July 31, 2014

I first encountered insanely talented Boston based artist/illustrator Logan Faerber at HeroesCon 2014. It was early in the morning as the vendors and artists were still setting up their booths before the hordes came streaming in. He sold me a very charming print of his piece "Monster" for a mere $3. Then I saw the Pokeman Trainers series with Bulbasaur, Alakazam, and Nidoking. And holy sh*t, I knew we had ask Logan to do an interview.

It is really difficult to list all of the projects Logan has been involved with. Just to name a few, Logan was featured in the comic anthology Hellbound 2 with his story “Grampire." Logan also provided the art for the graphic novel “Re-pro-duct” with writer Austin Wilson (aka: Hideous Energy). He has done alternate covers for Adventure Time and Bravest Warriors comics from BOOM! Studios. Logan collaborated with writer Erik Craddockon the book series Cartoon Guidebook for Absolute Failure. His art is on t-shirts. His prints are sold in numerous stores. He does commissions. He has been a teacher at MassArt and Montserrat College of Art. And, aside from his freelance work and working on a super secret project with a major publisher, he puts his BFA of Illustration and Graphic Design to good use as head of the creative department at Dockyard.com.

Despite being busy juggling all these projects, Logan was kind enough to agree to an interview. I also highly recommend checking out his Website, Tumblr, Dribble, and following him on Twitter, where he posts the most amazing progress photos on the illustrations he is currently working on.

*Click any pic to enlarge.

Q: You illustrate a fair amount of video game related art, what are your all time favorite games? What are you currently playing?
Logan: Oh man, my all time favorite games? Let’s see here… Super Mario World, Tetris, Super Metroid, The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Final Fantasy Tactics, Super Smash Brothers Melee, Final Fantasy 9, Bioshock, Halo 1. I’m sure there’s a ton more but these are the main ones that come to mind. As for what I’ve been playing; I have very little time to play games these days due to work and being an adult, but most recently I played through Shovel Knight and Mario Kart 8, both of which are fantastic!

Q: My friend, who is a gigantic Pokemon fan and loves your recent Pokemon trainer illustrations, said I need to ask you what character is your favorite Pokemon starter?
Logan: I assume this is based on the first game, but even if it’s not I would still go Squirtle for his husky Somers voice, but really because I ultimately want a giant turtle with water cannons. The closer I can get to having Gamera as a pet the better.

Q: On June 30th, Out of Step Arts published the statement: Logan Faerber has also started a new project that should be announced soon. I can tell you that it will be with a major publisher and he’ll be doing all of the art and coloring. Care to elaborate? Is your awesome character The Brains part of this project?Logan: No, actually. He’s for a separate project I’m working on at dockyard.com as an experimental in house website/HTML5 game. More to come on that soon, but we hope to have that website out and ready for people to use by the end of the year. As for the book I’m working on, it is in fact with a major publisher and will be a 4 issue series. I will be starting work on it every soon, but all of the characters and story have already been established so it’s just a matter of getting the final script ready and I’ll be good to go. You will hear more about it once the announcement comes in the next few months.

Q: Your Rocket Racoon for Multiversity Comics Guardians of the Galaxy month is badass. Were you a Bill Mantlo and Keith Giffen fan growing up?
Logan: I was, but without knowing it, if that makes sense. My older brother had been at the peak of his comic reading and ownership when I was only 5 or 6, so I had flipped through a ton of old Marvel and DC comics he had laying around, but certainly wasn’t aware of who any of the writers or illustrators were. It was only later, once I became a teenager and started to collect my own issues while also revisiting his back issues that I really started connected all the names and faces. That being said, I became a fan of theirs at 14.

Q: When can we expect the next installment of your collaboration with Erik Craddock “Cartoon Guidebook to Absolute Failure?”
Logan: So The Cartoon Guidebook to Absolute Failure” is complete for now, aside from a hardcover collection due out at the end of this year. We had planned on making 6 issues, which is what will comprise this collection, and had spoken about continuing with it into the future, but I was busy with some of my personal projects and was going to be starting the comic series we mentioned earlier this interview. That being said, there may be more to come years down the line.

Q: I noticed the Tomb Raider Official Website is selling screenprint posters of your piece “Field of Lost Sailors,” how mind blowing was it when you heard from them?
Logan: Pretty crazy actually, especially since I was a huge fan of the early games and was really looking forward to the revitalization of the franchise. My friend Marc in NY actually got me in touch with them, so it wasn’t 100% cold call or anything, but it was still crazy to get feedback from a team who is currently working on a game you’re amped to play. Thankfully, the game was also fantastic.

Q: You painted Sulu for GeekOut’s Takei Back the Night fundraising event in 2012. Do you prefer painting or digital illustration? Which one is more time consuming?
Logan: I actually think that both of these take an equal amount of time and I love both of them equally. I’ve been doing a lot more digital work recently purely due to the times and the necessity for reproduction, or the requirement that it be vectorized. I am going to be doing more physical painting pieces soon however, starting with skateboard decks in order to get back into the medium. This will also give me a good break from staring at a screen from time to time while also still being creative.

Q: What graphic novels or comics are you currently following?
Logan: Currently I’m following the new 52 Batman, Wonder Woman, Saga, Black Science, Elektra, All New X-Men, and am super excited to read more Fables, but I hopped on to the bandwagon late so I’m only at issue 80-ish at this point.

Q: Link or Finn? Who would win in a fight?
Logan: Link because he had more years of experience… unless of course we are taking into consideration that every Link is a different Link, then Finn. Also, Jake is 100% better companion than Navi.

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

At the end of August, well known gay erotica publishing house Bruno Gmünder is releasing the latest erotic story compilation Out of Uniform edited by The Advocate's former managing editor Winston Gieseke.

Gieseke has had a long and hilariously wonderful jack of all trades career mixing his ability to write with his ability to perform. Beginning his career as a television writer, Winston Gieseke penned
episodes for shows like Wildfire and Hollywood Off-Ramp. He has composed
tantalizing copy for various adult
entertainment companies and served as editor in chief of both Men and
Freshmen magazines before honing his journalistic skills as managing
editor of The Advocate. He has also edited numerous other Erotic Story compilations including Team Players, Hired Hands, and Until the Sun Rises Gay Vampire Erotica. I encourage you to learn more about Winston at his charmingly amusing website.

In this age of adult tube sites and over abundance of free pornography, reading short erotic stories feels like a welcome change of pace. Stories leave us to our imagination, which is usually way hotter than watching two twinks getting paid by some low rent porn company to bump uglies in a completely dispassionate and unoriginal manner. Throw a couple of uniforms into the mix, and our imaginations will run wild.

Perhaps Gieseke sums this up best in his introduction to Out of Uniform when he writes, "A uniform transforms an everyday guy into a modern-day Superman, one who, ironically, we can’t wait to get naked. Because the only thing sexier than a man in uniform is a man out of uniform."

The publisher was kind enough to let us share one of the short stories - "Kamikaze Journo Seeks Troop Leader" by Roger Willoughby. If you like this, there will be plenty more to read when the book comes out on August 31st! And, its softcover, paperback size is perfect for holding with your one free hand.

“Have you ever attended a boy scout orgy? Well, I have, and it’s fucking in tents.”

OK, so I’m a better journalist than a joke teller. Maybe because I’m a happy joke teller and an angry journalist. But it’s the anger that gets results. See, I’ve had it up to here with this bullshit about scouts
discriminating against gay kids. It’s not right. Not that it’s a personal issue for me or anything. You don’t have to be gay to care about injustice. As a journalist, my sexual preference is irrelevant. Just like
Anderson Cooper’s used to be. So, I won’t tell you which side of the fence I play on, except to say that I don’t like labels of any kind. But this is an issue that should be important to everyone. Because when
one of us suffers from discrimination, we all suffer. So, I’ve decided that what’s needed is an exposé. I know for a fact there are plenty of gay scout leaders. And if I can catch one of them red-handed, say, in the act of blowing someone (or better!), I think I can blow the lid off of this whole thing in a big way.

I’m a man on a mission. Unfortunately, due to the sensitivity of said mission, I myself have to act as bait...(click to continue story)

Hosts Michael Earle and Molly Jay hilariously talk all things Star Trek.
This week, it is Part 1 of the Star Trek: The Motion Picture Watch Along! Mike and Molly invite Julia Simon over to watch STTMP on Netflix and the three of them enjoy beverages and discuss the events taking place on screen! It's like watching a movie with your three best friends without having to clean up when they leave! So, when you are ready to go, hit play on your Netflix stream or STTMP DVD and join in the fun! Engage!

Monday, July 28, 2014

If this doesn't get your work day started on a great note, nothing will! A few years back, The Naked and Famous released their terrific track "Young Blood!" Legendary DJ Tiësto teamed up with DJ Hardwell to make one of the greatest remixes of all times, where the remix actually made the song even better. Take a listen!

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Ukranian artist Rostislav Zagornov amazes me. I stumbled upon his work by a happy accident while killing time on ArtStation and one illustration after another just blew me away. Especially the image titled Mashaundbear. It is by far the most endearing, and perhaps darkest, homage to the Russian folk tale Masha and the Bear the internet has to offer. I had to contact him to see if he was willing to let us feature him on the blog. Thankfully, he was and sent back this note:

Hi, excuse me for bad English)) So, you can use any work you see...And thanks for attention to my artworks))With best regards, Rostislav ZagornovKyiv, Ukraine

There is no real bio info for Rostislav. He doesn't have his own website. No art blog. He doesn't say all that much about himself anywhere. But, here is what I do know. In 2002, he graduated from Kramatorsk Institute of Economics and Humanities. Currently he is a concept artist/texture artist for Terminal FX, a firm that specializes in visual effects for film, TV, and commercials. And, sometimes he goes by two different pseudomyms: Datem and Attemme. But recently, his real name seems to be garnering the most attention.

Take a look! Everything from his original creations to his Star Wars and video game based fan art features the richest, loveliest color schemes while portraying a dark, dystopian future that even the greatest fantasy and science fiction writers would envy.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Hosts Michael Earle and Molly Jay hilariously talk all things Star Trek.
This week, Mike and Molly discuss the love life of Commander William Riker! Plus, Molly finally is almost over with her Enterprise episode torture?! They discuss three more episodes! Tune in now!